Kindle Fire gets Hotmail app

To make sure users have access to its Hotmail email service from all possible devices, Microsoft has created a new Hotmail app for the new Kindle Fire tablet.

 

Hotmail product management director David Law said the new app has several advantages over the native Kindle Fire mail application.

 

"We think it’s critical that our customers can use Hotmail from any device they choose. So, in addition to making Hotmail work great on devices running Windows, we’ll continue to invest in great experiences on other major device platforms," Law said in a blog post.

 

He noted Hotmail already has apps for Apple's iOS 5 and Google's Android OS, which will make it easier to use Hotmail on devices running the OSes.

 

Law said the apps for iOS and Android benefit 12 million active Hotmail users on iOS and over three million active users of Android apps.

 

In the Kindle Fire application, Law said the new Hotmail app can sync all mail, contacts, folders, and subfolders via the more robust Exchange Active Sync protocol.

 

In contrast, he said the native Kindle application simply downloads mail via POP3.

 

On the other hand, he said they had to tweak the app for Kindle Fire because it uses a different implementation of Android.

 

"Now that we’ve finished the work and the app is ready, we’re excited to give customers a great Hotmail experience on the Kindle Fire," he said. — TJD, GMA News